Assessment of dysfunctional working models of self and others in schizophrenic patients: A summary of data collected in nine nations

Objective: To investigate the cross-cultural feasibility of a new scale for assessing dysfunctional working models of self and others, and to evaluate its discriminative power. Method: Schizophrenic patients (N = 351), non-psychotic patients (N = 86) and non-clinical subjects (N = 511) collected in 10 centres completed the DWM-S. Current psychopathology was assessed by means of the BPRS. Results: Alpha coefficients were high in all samples. Mean scores on the DWM-S appeared to be comparable in all countries, suggesting cross-national generalizability. No significant correlation was found with sex, age, levels of psychopathology and duration of illness. Discriminant analyses showed that more than 70% of the schizophrenic patients are correctly classified. Conclusion: The DWM-S is an easily administered self-report instrument which allows to pinpoint internal dysfunctional working models of self and others in various types of patients. It is a useful tool for case conceptualization, especially when psychotherapeutic interventions are part of the treatment programme. (C) Munksgaard 2000.